In a Spanish GP FP1 session where several teams chose to field young drivers in order to fulfil the requirement of running rookies in four FP1 sessions during the season, George Russell began the Barcelona weekend with a smile after finishing fastest in the opening practice session.
The Mercedes driver topped the timesheets with a lap of 1:16.363, a time that allowed him to finish just over two tenths of a second clear of Oscar Piastri. In reality, however, this first session was used more to evaluate energy management strategies around the lap than to chase the absolute performance limit of the cars.
As anticipated ahead of the weekend, Barcelona once again highlighted the significant loss of speed experienced when the electrical energy deployment runs out. On the main straight, teams observed speed drops of around 30 km/h. However, the way drivers approached the high-speed corners, particularly Turn 9 and the final two corners, proved equally important because throttle application in those sections directly influences battery management throughout the lap.
For that reason, beyond tyre work, one of the key objectives for engineers was to compare the simulations developed back at the factory with the data gathered on track, allowing them to identify the most effective areas of the circuit in which to deploy electrical energy for maximum lap-time gain.
Charles Leclerc finished third behind George Russell and Oscar Piastri in a session that also allowed the Monegasque driver to begin adapting to the Carbon Industrie braking system after Ferrari’s decision to move away from Brembo discs and pads. Every braking package has its own characteristics, and a period of adaptation is naturally required to fully understand its behaviour, especially at a circuit featuring heavy braking zones such as Turns 1 and 10.
Charles Leclerc ended the session more than half a second behind the fastest time, while Max Verstappen’s deficit was even larger, with the Dutchman finishing nearly seven tenths behind the Mercedes driver. Ahead of the weekend, Max Verstappen had described Barcelona as a crucial test for evaluating Red Bull’s progress in high-speed corners, an area where the team believed the RB22 had been lacking downforce compared to its rivals.
An impressive fifth place went to Leonardo Fornaroli, who made his official Formula 1 session debut with McLaren and emerged as the fastest rookie on track. The Italian driver, who had already gained Formula 1 experience in Testing Previous Cars programmes, completed more than twenty laps and collected valuable data that will allow him to compare simulator work directly with real-world track experience.
The opportunity was made possible by regulations requiring teams to give rookie drivers track time during the season. Fornaroli was far from the only newcomer in action, as all four top teams followed a similar approach. At Mercedes, Frederick Vesti replaced Andrea Kimi Antonelli and finished 15th. At Ferrari, Dino Beganovic stepped in for Lewis Hamilton and ended the session in eighth place. Meanwhile, Red Bull handed track time to Ayumu Iwasa in place of Isack Hadjar.
For Ferrari junior Dino Beganovic, the session was primarily focused on gathering data to help evaluate Ferrari’s extensive development package. The Scuderia arrived in Barcelona with one of its largest upgrade packages of the season, covering virtually every area of the car, from the front wing to the floor. Dino Beganovic ran the previous specification, providing Ferrari with a direct comparison against Charles Leclerc, who was equipped with the new components.
There was also a strong performance from Paul Aron, who replaced Nico Hülkenberg at Audi for the session and finished sixth, ahead of Liam Lawson’s Racing Bulls. Ninth place went to the second Racing Bulls entry of Arvid Lindblad, while Franco Colapinto rounded out the top ten for Alpine.
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